It can only be assumed that Marvel and Hasbro have a ton of faith in Ant-Man’s drawing power. So much so that Ultron is the build-a-figure of the Ant-Man themed wave. You know, the villain from a completely different movie! In fact there are really only three figures in the wave that are actually Ant-Man related, and only one is from the movie. So it’s really kind of “Ant-Man and a bunch of misfit toys we wanted to fit in.” I’m not complaining though, because this wave does finish off some of those long-in-limbo characters like Bulldozer and Tigershark.

Having lived (yes, I’m considered a Marvel Legends vet at this point) through the Marvel Legends Brood Queen wave I am quite thankful that Hasbro did not try to shoehorn in a giant ant or something similar to go with this wave’s motif. A properly scaled movie Ultron Prime is a perfectly reasonable build-a-figure and I am glad to have put one together.

Ultron certainly hasn’t had the greatest history with Marvel Legends. He’s had a few figures, but nothing to really call a definitive version. We started out way back in Marvel Legends series 11 (Legendary Riders — because Ultron is known for his riding!) with some type of anime-bunny-Ultron hybrid. Then things went silent for a long time until the Iron Man Iron Monger series a few years back. We finally got something that was passable as Ultron, but didn’t quite scratch that classic itch. That figure was then repainted in gold as an incentive for the Marvel digital comic service.

Now we have the movie version of Ultron, and I don’t think it would be a stretch to say it is probably the best representation of the character in the Marvel Legends line. At this point I have so many movie figures integrated with my comic ones that it really doesn’t matter where they come from. For the most part they all fit in together fine anyway.

Ultron requires the standard six figures to complete: head, torso, two legs, and two arms. There are no chases or short-packed figures in the wave, but if you come upon a lone Wasp or Ant-Man it’s because those two are double packed in a case of eight. The first thing I noticed about Ultron was that his arms and legs were very gummy feeling. They used some REALLY soft plastic for the joints at the elbows, knees, and ankles. It’s a shame too because Ultron is built like a beautiful ballerina, and I could totally get some sick one legged poses out of him if he could support his own weight. But he can’t. At least on one foot anyway.

Besides the joints, the only other issue I have is with his face. It’s pretty good, but the placement or shape of the mouth seems off. I want evil sarcastic robot, not Ultron who smelled a fart. I don’t necessarily think it’s the sculptor’s fault either. Hot Toys picked a very similar facial expression, and it’s probably because they were both provided the same control art. Like I said, I don’t hate it but I think maybe an open mouth might have been a more fitting choice for the character.

Gummy joints and a bit of a silly face aside I really like this Ultron. I enjoy the figure far more than I did the movie. With Marvel Legends coming in at about $20 – $22 per figure these days it will cost about $120 to make the guy. If you don’t like the other figures in the wave the going rate for just Ultron is about $60 – $65 loose. I think the wave is extremely strong despite being very loosely Ant-Man based, and I love that I could finally complete my wrecking crew with Bulldozer. Most of the wave can still be had at MSRP through Amazon and is currently shipping! If you prefer ordering by case the Entertainment Earth has you covered.